Wheelchair won't go in van

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Bestfriends14

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Good morning,

I cannot seem to find an answer to this query and so I turn to you more knowledgeable folks. My husband's Quantum Edge 6 will not go up the ramp into the van. I have parked on a flat surface to no avail. However, it will go back up our drive way, which is quite steep. I have adjusted the elevate and foot rest, but it still will not go up the ramp and into the van. Does anyone have any solutions? I need to get this figured out ASAP, as my husband will need his chair back soon.

Thank you in advance
 
Are the wheels spinning? If not, my chair(different brand) won't go up inclines with a lot of tilt, either from the entire tilt, or just the back. It is a safety design, and can't be changed, because I asked. I have to get it in a position different from what I'm used to to move the chair...
 
Make sure the wheels are dry and that the seat is in its lowest position. Make sure this van is in the kneel position. Sometimes going up the ramp at a slightly faster speed helps, and then slowing it all the way down once up the ramp and in the van. Worst case scenario is you may have to get behind him and give him a little bit of a push.
 
I'm not sure what you mean by "it will not go up the ramp". Does it not seem to have enough power to move it up? Does it get stuck on something? Are the wheels spinning? Is it a ramp system that you've created that is too high of an angle? We also have a Quantum Edge and have not had problems driving it into our Honda Odyssey with the BraunAbility ramp system (which has a lowered floor to keep the angle of rise at an appropriate number). Note that I typically drive Darcey into the van backwards as she sits in the wheelchair. Help us understand so we can try to help you with a solution.

My Best...

Jim
 
Thanks everyone,

I finally figured it out. The seat was in the elevated position (thanks, Karen : )), and without my husband to guide me, it was a lot of mucking about until I figured out the controls. It would go up our steep drive way, but when it came to the ramp, the wheels would just spin and the chair would not go up. It could sense when it was on firm outside ground or when it needed to go in the van. Of course it could not do that with the seat so high.

My husband is using a manual while he is getting his out of country travel insurance renewed back in Canada. As such, I was left to my own devices with the chair. Now at least I know how to work the entire thing!

Thanks again all.
 
I briefly had a Q6 edge as a loaner while my wheelchair was in the shop. Like you, I discovered that the drive motors were disabled when the seat was tilted, reclined, elevated, etc. To put the wheelchair into my van, I have to recline the seat and tilt it a bit. I could not get the Q6 edge into my van.

So, it was a very brief loan of the wheelchair, just the time it took to get to the parking lot and back:).

I subsequently discovered that this behavior can be altered by reprogramming the chair. I have not investigated that further, so don't know how reliable that information is.

Steve
 
Oh, how interesting. Thanks, Steve. Wayne only took the Quantum because the ALS Society contributed some cash towards the purchase of it and, in return, we give back, well...after.

I'll get Wayne to look into reprogramming it because that really makes no sense. It can go up hills, but not up the van's ramp? Odd. Thanks for the tip, Steve.
 
Yes, max speed in a given position can be reprogrammed. A short ramp requires torque that the standard settings may not support.
 
Thanks, Laurie:

The issue was not the speed but was the elevation of the seat. Once the seat was in its original position, I could use the attendant controls to get the chair in. I guess that is a lesson for today's chairs and how sensitive they are regarding what position they have been left in.
 
Only some makes and models of wheelchairs have this limitation. I have five wheelchairs (four Permobil and one Magic Mobility). All of my wheelchairs can be driven with the seat elevated, tilted, reclined, etc. without modifying the stock programming. They go slower, but they will move.

When I say programming, I really mean changing the parameters that control the chair. While it is theoretically possible to alter the programming of a wheelchair, that is a very advanced topic.

For my Permobil chairs, I bought a dongle (essentially a hardware license key) off of ebay and then downloaded the "programming" software from the internet. It gives me the ability to alter the parameters that a wheelchair dealer can change. There are additional parameters I cannot change because my dongle does not have high enough license privileges.

I have a different dongle that I bought off of ebay for the Magic Mobility wheelchair. I don't know what Quantum uses, but suspect it would be a similar arrangement.

You can read extensively about this topic on the forum at wheelchairdriver dot com.

Steve
 
I’m looking for a four wheel drive vehicle which will cope with our quarter mile driveway in the middle of nowhere but have to manoeuvre my wheelchair behind the passenger seat. Any recommendations?
 
We couldn’t find a 4 wheel drive handicap vehicle in our area. We got a Honda Pilot with a manual ramp. Pilots do (of course) come in an AWD version from Honda but they are not being converted. We put snow tires on for winter and find it handles really in snow.
 
There are accessible vehicle specialists that may be able to convert an AWD vehicle-- at least, worth checking into it. You can find dealers in your area at themobilityresource.com
 
I live where it snows a lot and have a great desire to get a 4 wheel drive wheelchair van.

I have found several potential solutions, though I don't own any of these (yet:)).

Chevrolet Express (or GMC Savana) Conversion van (such as an Explorer limited SE conversion). The 1500 Express was available in all wheel drive. They are rare and expensive, but can be fitted with a wheelchair lift. I use a 2 wheel drive version of this for my wheelchair van today.

Mercedes Sprinter all wheel drive van fitted with a wheelchair lift. These are only available in diesel, and the diesel Sprinters have a reputation for intractable and expensive emissions repairs starting at around 100,000 miles. They are stunningly expensive, even well used.

Chevrolet or GMC 1500, 2500, or 3500 pickup truck with an All Terrain Conversion. A driver's side conversion will unlikely accommodate the size of a power wheelchair suitable for our use, so you are pretty much stuck with a passenger's side conversion. Likewise, a 1500 will probably be too short for most folks in a power wheelchair with a rehab seat. And, finally, fitting a power wheelchair with a rehab seat into the passenger side conversion will be very, very tight (and may not fit at all for many wheelchairs). My investigation showed that my C500s VS wheelchair will not fit in the passenger side.

If you are going to ride in your wheelchair, I don't recommend the Chevrolet Express. You can't get all wheel drive with a dropped floor (to my knowledge) and you can't sit in the wheelchair and see out the windows unless you have a dropped floor!

Note that there is a significant difference between all wheel drive and four wheel drive. Four wheel drive will have a transfer case with a high and low range. This makes them much more capable than all wheel drive. Of the above, only the pickup truck is available with true four wheel drive.

Steve
 
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